The Light of a Darkened Heart: Dawn of Shadows
by RobotToxic
Summary: After fifteen years of peace and light, the darkness rises once more & old enemies return. Katie Heart's children, Aeris and Nico, are one of the many of the Next Generation to protect the worlds before all hope, & light, is lost. But the real question is, is it already too late? The light's final hours are near...& the Keyblade Masters know it. Who will rise?...And who will fall?
1. Chapter 1: Night Visions

**Hello, everyone! This is the reboot for the last installment for the "Light of a Darkened Heart: Meifu no Yumiya" and now without further wait, I introduce the reboot, "The Light of a Darkened Heart: Dawn of Shadows"! Hopefully this reboot will go more smoothly and I hope that you guys like it. And if you are new to the series...I suggest reading the original LoaDH first then "Dark Descent" then this one. And I'm sorry for their terribleness, I was a beginning writer so their not all that great but I have improved a lot so I can say that this one will be the best in the series! I am more experienced and I can sort of catch my mistakes quicker now so there shouldn't be as many. And remember, this is a Next Generation story so many of the KH and FF...and a whole lot of different characters that have occurred in previous stories...are a lot older now. So no saying "Blahidy Blah isn't that old!" and stuff like that. It's suppose to be like that. Enough with this chit-chat, let's get this show on the road!**

*I do not own any of the Kingdom Hearts characters, I only own Aeris Heart, Nico Heart, Katie Heart...and a whole lot of others but you haven't met them yet. Spoilers, ya know?

* * *

Darkness.

That's all Aeris Heart could see. It was like she was falling in this black void. She believed her eyes were open but it was so dark, it was like they were closed. As if she was blind. But that wasn't the only peculiar thing…in her mind; she could hear soft beating of a heart, like the way it would sound if she would hug her mother. It was the strangest thing…is this…a dream?

Aeris felt her feet land on a surface and right as soon as they touched the ground, the ground burst into light. It was so bright, Aeris had to shield her eyes for a second, squeezing them shut. She hesitantly opened them, feeling her pupils readjust painfully to the sudden change of light. A puzzled hum escaped from her when she saw she was on a beach. More specially, near the shore of the abandoned island that her twin brother, Nico, liked to play on from time to time. They were soon starting to get too old for it but for old time's sake, they row to the island. But this was different. The white sand seemed to look like no one has ever stepped on it, played in it…it looked brand new. But the old, rickety buildings and tree houses were still there in their old, normal shape. Splintering, rotting. She looked around and saw no one. Suddenly she saw someone walk on the walkway between the abandoned island to the small one with the paopu tree, she couldn't tell who it was. She went to call out but her body suddenly jerked forward.

She was now standing in the exact stop where she saw the person on the walkway. The wind was blowing hard, her pony tail whipping against her cheeks and neck. The sky suddenly turned dark, lightning lighting up the sky in fury, some of them struck the violently churning the once blue ocean. The water was now black. The heart beat noise was getting louder and slowly started to quicken its pace. She looked up and saw the person she spotted earlier now on the small island. Before they could completely turn around, shadows of blue, purple, and black burst under them and swirled up, engulfing them. Aeris felt a sudden chill go down her spine, making her spin around. The same shadows that engulfed the person was now behind Aeris, the end of the walkway no longer visible. There was another person, what it the same person? She could see what they were wearing. All black with the hood up so their face wasn't visible, also, their back faced her. Out of nowhere, a… _creature…_ appeared. It was ink black with some blue highlights. Bandages were wrapped around its mussel-y body. Its eyes were a blank yellow that seemed to glow. Its mouth was filled with sharp teeth. It roared and the heart beat that Aeris could hear was going faster. The person in the cloak backed away from the monster, clearly terrified. They spun around and held their hand out to Aeris and suddenly, the monster attacked the person. They were sent flying towards Aeris with one swing. Aeris opened her arms up wide to catch the person but they went through her like a ghost.

Aeris felt her body lurch down and the shadows rushed past her until a blank white hallway stretched out before her. She looked around frantically, trying to figure out where she is now. She spun around and in front of a golden door was another person in a black cloak. They had some kind of weapon resting on their shoulder. It was black, except for the hand guard, which was red. Its tip looked deadly. They slowly rose their hand up to Aeris, and darkness burst out of their palm. Aeris screamed and tried to move but she couldn't. It was like she was frozen in place. Out of nowhere, another person in a black cloak jumped out in front of her with a weapon similar to the other person but it was white with electric blue. It looked like it was made out of gears, a clock at its end and its hilt, bat wings, and horned skulls. They blocked the attack from getting Aeris. Aeris stared at the person, not knowing what to think. But they suddenly fell over, the darkness taking over them. Aeris wanted to see if the person was okay but her eyes snapped up to the end of the hallway. The heart beat grew faster and faster as a…glitching? The person in the black cloak that attacked her was glitching as if they were in a computer but Aeris could see that it was glitching through thirteen different body types…somewhere smaller, some were huge. The person was dragging their weapon on the floor, it sparking darkness and pooling it behind them. The hall was getting overcome by darkness.

Aeris gasped when the person suddenly appeared in her face. All she could see was a smirk. They rose their weapon and slashed down.

* * *

Aeris shot up in her sleep, panting and hyperventilating, almost. She patted her front to see if she was still in one piece. She was. She looked onto the other side of her room, seeing her brother fast asleep still. It was dark outside, the crickets chirping softly. Aeris sighed and shook her head hard, trying to get the images she saw in the nightmare go away. It felt…so real…who were those people? That…monster? The weapons looked familiar to her…but she couldn't recall what they were called. She got out of bed and tip-toed from her room to the kitchen, getting a glass a water. She emptied it three times until she had enough. She leaned against the counter and rubbed her temples. "What…was all that?" She shook her head again. "I'll ask Mom and Dad what it could have meant in the morning…" she went back to her shared room and went back under the covers. She curled up into a fetal position her face facing the wall. She turned her head to look past her shoulder when she felt her side get heavier. She smiled to see it was the family cat. She petted it lightly and the cat curled against her. It's purring calmed her enough to go back to sleep.

The family cat watched the fourteen year old fall back to sleep and waited a few moments before turning into its true form. A sleek blue figure that still somewhat resembled the shape of a cat and red diamond shaped eyes, its antennae shaped like bolts of lightning. It looked up to the window and saw a shadow pass it. And the shadow's beady yellow eyes. It was gone in a flash. The blue creature jumped down to the floor and looked at Nico and Aeris worryingly. It sat in the middle of the room, watching…waiting for the shadows to move. It chittered in its language, "It will happen...soon…"

* * *

 **So! That is the end of that chapter, I hoped you guys liked the reboot and I will try my best to keep my motivation up and update as soon as I can. But you guys know how it is...anyway, see you in the next chapter! Don't forget to telll me what you think! See you later!  
**


	2. Chapter 2: The Beginning of the End

*I do not own any of the Kingdom Hearts characters, I only own Aeris Heart, Nico Heart, Katie Heart...and a whole lot of others but you haven't met them yet. Spoilers, ya know?

* * *

It was soon dawn, waking one of the twins up. Aeris rubbed her eyes and yawned, looking over to her brother's side of the room. She stifled a laugh to see him all tangled in sheets with his rump high in the air and his hair stuck to his face thanks to his drooling. His snoring was always worse in the morning. She got out of bed and rubbed her arms, the warmth that her bed gave her rushing away as her skin adjusted to the normal air. She grabbed her clothes for the morning and came into the kitchen, grabbing her cereal and made breakfast. She brought up her head and smiled to see that it was her mother.

Her mother's name was Katie. She had brown hair with blonde frosted tips. Her eyes were a deep, dark blue that were behind thick glasses. She was in a simple black long-sleeved shirt and jeans, barefoot. It seemed that she put something on quick for the morning. She smiled at Aeris. "Good morning, dear…your brother still in bed?"

Aeris nodded and watched her mother get her breakfast and join her at the table. "Yeah…you know how he is…sleeps like a rock." She looked down the hallway and made a puzzled hum. "Where's Dad? Is he still in bed?"

Katie shook her head. "No…no, your father was called to Radiant Garden in the middle of the night last night…he's not home. He should be back in a couple of days."

"Oh. Okay…" Aeris took a few bites of her breakfast before asking, "Why was he called there?"

Katie shrugged her shoulders. "Something about a computer…he was still half asleep when he was explaining it to me. I bet the security system just needs some tweaking so it shouldn't be long. He'll be back soon. I promise. It'll be like he never left!" She got up and grabbed a tablet from the counter in the kitchen before coming back. She tapped it a couple of times and a small hologram display of a galaxy appeared over their heads. Katie slid her fingers on the tablet and the hologram zoomed in on a red dot. "See? That's his tracker in that badge he has." The projection turned off.

Aeris nodded again and finished her cereal. She tapped the table a couple of times before saying, "Mom? Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Of course! What is it, Aeris?"

Aeris took a deep breath. "I…had…a weird dream last night."

Katie looked at her over glasses. "Oh? What was it about?"

"I'm not sure…that's why I want to talk to you about it…" Aeris explained the dream to her. From the island shore to the person in the cloak that saved her. "Do…do you know what it could have meant?"

Katie pursed her lips. "Well…" she thought about it for a long time. "Aeris…there is something I should talk to you about—"

"GOOD MORNING!" Someone yelled at the end of the hallway. Aeris stifled a laugh and shook her head, it was her brother. He was already dressed, a black short-sleeved long-coat over a light grey shirt tucked in dark blue pants. He had white belts going everywhere and his right eye was hiding behind his hair. He had his mother's hair and eyes, unlike Aeris, who had her father's hair color and eyes. He had a not-so-helpful red bandana under his hair and his messy hair was sticking out of it.

Katie laughed at her son. "What are you doing to your hair? Are you trying to be like Vincent?" she teased.

"Who's Vincent?" Nico sat down at the table, nibbling on a breakfast bar.

Katie shook her head. "Never mind…I expected that you didn't remember him." She stood up and returned to the kitchen.

Aeris turned in her chair. "Wait, Mom! What were you going to tell me?"

"Hm…I don't remember…oh! I was going to tell you about the Or—" A buzz came from her, making her dig into her pocket. She sighed heavily. "Well, there goes our plans for today, guys…your Uncle Sora needs help with his boat again." She went to the front door and put on her boots.

"Wait, Mom! When are you—?"

"I'll talk to you later, sweetie…you know how impatient Sora gets." Katie rubbed her arm, lifting her sleeve a bit. Aeris titled her head to see what looked like a black "x" on her mother's wrist. Was it…moving…? "Goodbye, guys! Behave!" She left the twins alone.

Nico looked around. "Where's Da—?"

"Gone. Did you see that?"

Nico gave his sister a weird look. "Saw what?"

"The thing on Mom's wrist…"

"What thing?"

"It was…I don't know what it was! It was black and it was huge! It was shaped like an "x"."

"Um…I have no idea what you're talking about." Nico got up from his chair. "Come on, Aeris! Let's go to the island."

Aeris stared at him, the memory of her dream coming to her. "U-Um…can't we…just play with the Gameboys instead?"

"Psh, no! We did that yesterday…come on! We haven't gone to the island forever!"

"I don't know…"

Nico raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong? There's something upsetting you…I can tell."

"It's…nothing…" Aeris got up. "It's just…I had a weird dream last night."

"Weird dream, huh? And I assume that something happened on the island in your dream?"

Aeris nodded.

"Uh-huh. Thought so." Nico smiled at her and patted her shoulder. "Dibs on the blue Gameboy."

"What?"

Nico plopped on the couch and the family cat jumped up on his lap, purring. He patted it a couple of times before saying to his sister, "You had a bad dream. And it's bugging you. So…we're not going to the island! Simple as that. Now come here! I can't trade by myself!"

* * *

Katie didn't return until late. It was past suppertime. The twins ate and headed to their room. Nico jumped when he heard lightning boom overhead. Ever since he was little, he hated thunder storms. It hurt his ears. He was sitting on his bed with his back against the wall and hugging a pillow.

Aeris looked up from her book and asked him, "You okay over there?"

Nico nodded. "Y-Yeah…just my normal thunder storm jitters…" He jumped and made a small squeak when thunder boomed again.

"I…don't think so…" Aeris closed her book and turned on her head so she could face him. "I know how much the thunder bugs you. I'll stay up with you, if you want."

Nico shook his head. "No…no, you don't have to do that."

"I want to!"

Nico smiled and suddenly shivered.

"What?"

Nico shrugged his shoulders. "I-I don't know…" he shivered again.

"Are you cold?"

"No…I don't know what that is…or why I'm doing it—" He yelled when lightning lit up the sky.

"Maybe…it's the storm…?"

Nico shrugged again. "I-I'm not sure…but I don't feel so good…" Nico's head shot up and got up from his bed, going to the door.

Aeris got up. "Wh—where are you going?"

"I feel something's wrong!" Nico said over his shoulder. He opened the door and ran out into the hall.

"Wha—? Nico!" Aeris ran after him. "Where you going?!"

"I don't know!" Nico ran down the hall and made a sharp left. "Uh…Mom's room!" He stopped in the doorway. "Uh…Aeris…?"

"What?"

"Mom's…not here."


	3. Chapter 3: Bad Blood

*I do not own any of the Kingdom Hearts characters, I only own Aeris Heart, Nico Heart, Katie Heart...and a whole lot of others but you haven't met them yet. Spoilers, ya know?

* * *

"What do you mean, "Mom's not here"?!" Aeris yelled.

Nico motioned wildly at the doorway. "See for yourself!"

Aeris went into the room and saw that the sheets were disturbed, like their mother left in a hurry. She couldn't see their mother's nightclothes anywhere, not even in the hamper. So she left in a giant hurry. What would make her leave so quick? "Okay…maybe…she's in the bathroom?"

Nico shook his head. "Our bathroom and the master bathroom doors are opened and the lights are off. I'm telling you, she's not here!"

"Why would she leave the house in nothing but her nightclothes?"

"Maybe she didn't have her nightclothes on yet…" Nico pointed at him then at Aeris. "We're not in ours."

Aeris nodded in understanding. They were. Aeris was still in her bright clothes, and Nico was still in his dark clothes. "That may be…okay, then let's stay calm and look everywhere…okay? I think this storm is making you paranoid and jittery."

"I'm telling you…it's like I'm sensing that something is wrong…" Nico went around the house, Aeris behind him. He stopped and sighed heavily. "Yeah…she's not in the house…her shoes aren't by the door anymore."

"Then maybe it was a last minute call."

"She would have told us," Aeris told him. She crossed her arms, why was her brother acting so weird? In all their fourteen, almost fifteen, years of life, she has never seen him act like this before. She noticed something else. "You stopped jumping at the thunder."

Nico looked at her. "What?" He shook his head hard. "My phobia of storms doesn't matter right now. Mom isn't home! We need to—" His head shot up and he stared at the front door and burst through it and outside.

"Nico!" Aeris ran after him. "Where are you going?! Get your butt back here!" Aeris noticed that there was no rain. Only thunder and lightning. The sky was dark and the storm clouds were churning madly. There was even a green hue to the sky. The wind was blowing what felt like fifty miles an hour. Aeris looked far to the horizon, towards the small, remote island and her eyes widened. Above the island seemed to be the center of the storm. The clouds above the island were swirling, not like the clouds above Aeris' head. It was like it was been stirred…erratically. It was getting struck by lightning. "Nico…Nico! Nico, come back!" He was running to the docks. "Nic—" Aeris groaned loudly and ran after her brother.

She thought since she had longer legs than him, Aeris is 5'4''….Nico is only five feet tall, she would to be able to catch up to him quickly. She thought wrong. Nico was dashing his way to the boats, at top speed. Since when did Nico get so quick? The wind was blowing against them so there was no way he should be running like there was no wind at all. Her eyes widened to see that her brother was attempting to get a boat from the rocking dock. The waves were white capped; the ocean was so dark it looked black. And it crashed against the shore, spraying sea-water on the beach houses. He could barely stand on the dock, it was being shaked by the water so much.

Aeris finally caught up with him. He managed to get the boat untied and was about to step into the boat. She grabbed him by the shoulder. "Where do you think you're going?!"

"Look at the dock, Aeris!" Nico shouted over the raging sea and wind. He flinched a little at the thunder. He pointed on the other side of the dock. The boat on that side was gone. "Mom and Dad's boat is gone. And do you know where it is?" He pointed at the small island. "I can see it over there! And it looks like it's tied up to the dock! Mom's on the island! I can feel it! And I can also feel that something isn't right! And it's coming from that island!"

"So you're going over there?! Are you insane?! The storm is coming from there! It'll be worse there than here!"

"Look, I know that dream you had rattled you up a bit but Mom is on that island during a storm and I want to why! And you're not stopping me, Aeris." Nico got into the boat. As he grabbed the shift, he yelled over his shoulder, "You got fifteen seconds to decide if you're coming with or not. Starting now."

Aeris stared at him then shook her head hard before slowly getting into the boat. "This is insane…"

"We've done worse," Nico reminded her. "Hang on, it'll be bumpy." He sped to the island.

* * *

They almost tipped the boat. Twice. The waters were alive and angry. Waves crashed over them as they made their journey to the island. The twins finally made it to the island after a ten minute ride. Nico helped his sister get out of the boat, who was shaking like a leaf and completely soaked, like him. "You okay?"

Aeris nodded. "I'm fine…" She looked up and gasped. On the tiny island near the shore…there was a person standing there. She flashed back to her dream, it was the exact same. Her ponytail was whipping the back of her neck, the waves were tall and the storm turned furious. Lightning started to strike the sea. Her heart started to race. "This isn't…happening…" she whispered.

Nico saw the person too. He gasped. "Aeris, come on!" He grabbed her wrist and drug her to the shack and onto the bridge that connected the two islands. They stopped in the center of bridge. He yelled over the winds, "Mom? Mom! What are you doing out here?" Their mother didn't turn around. "Mom?" They started to get closer to her. "Mom, it's us! Can you hear me?" He suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"What?" Aeris asked him

Nico looked like he saw a ghost.

"What?!"

Nico slowly looked over to his sister, his pupils shrunken with fear. "Th-the thing I'm sensing…i-it's coming from…" He shakily pointed at their mother. "…M-Mom…"

"What are you…sensing?" Aeris questioned.

"Something…bad…"

Their mother slowly turned to them. Her cheeks and the whites of her eyes were tinted red…she had been crying. Her right sleeve had been ripped off. Aeris gasped to see that what she saw earlier in the day _was_ an "x"…but now, it had little black marks surrounding it and the small black marks were _growing_ up her arm…they were swaying like tiny flames. The black scar was bleeding aggressively, her hand stained red. Her shoulders were jerking up and down, showing that she was still crying. And she was shaking.

Nico was lost for words, not knowing what to say or do seeing the shape his mother was in. It was like something he would see in a horror movie. "M-Mom…?"

Their mother stared at them for a long time before whispering, "I'm sorry…" she suddenly curled in on herself, making agonized groans and hisses. Her shaking increased. The blood forming from her scar dripped onto the ground and the ground burst into dark flames. They slowly grew around her and a star formed under her feet. She sunk to her knees, hugging herself. She yanked her head up and screamed at the twins, "Go! Go, now! Go—!" It was swallowed by a scream. Her body convulsed painfully and she screamed at every convulsion. Her eyes snapped open and they shrank in fear. The twins slowly started to back away when her blue irises started to turn gold from the pupil. Suddenly, her body was lifted off the ground like a bullet and her arms opened wide. Her hair was floating on its own and she levitated three feet from the ground. An ear shattering hyper scream escaped from her widened mouth and the flames shot up and crawled up her body. It turned into streams of black and it started to cover her body until it was nothing but a solid black figure. It seemed to bubble. Darkness grew around her and the pentagram that formed under her started to expand. Slowly, out of their own little mini pentagrams, grew blobs of melting darkness until they fully stood up and formed into figures. The darkness suddenly burst with a red tint.

The twins yelped when they were knocked off of their feet. They scrambled up to their feet. "You okay?!" Aeris asked Nico, who looked like he was having a seizure.

He grabbed Aeris and held her tightly. "My head…agh…my…head…" He then pointed at the island. "It's coming from there…"

Aeris looked up and gulped. Standing before them were thirteen people in black cloaks. Just like the ones in her dream. In the center, where their mother was, was a woman who looked just like their mother except with darker tone of skin, her eyes were gold, and her hair was silver. She grinned wickedly. The group around her had their hoods up. Except for one…

He was an old man, slouching forward. He was bald with pointy ears, all his hair was his silver goatee. He had piercing gold eyes just like the woman and the same skin color. He smiled just as wicked at the twins, "This is the new generation of Wielders? You look like you wouldn't be able to harm a fly…"

Nico growled at him.

Aeris stared at her bother. What was that for?

The old man raised an eyebrow at the growl then his smirk grew wider. "Oh…I see…you have the Sense…that must have been your mother's doing…" his eyes shifted over to Aeris. "And you have the Sense as well…but it's not the same…isn't it?"

"What are you talking about?" Aeris inquired. "Who are you?!"

"You will find out soon enough…" the old man looked at one of the cloaked figures and pointed at the twins. "Take them."


	4. Chapter 4: World of Sacrifice

*I do not own any of the Kingdom Hearts characters, I only own Aeris Heart, Nico Heart, Katie Heart, Tiaxek, Ixulos, Xalgon, Crystal Estheim, Len Petatonix...and soon others. Spoilers.

* * *

The twins stood in horror of what they just witnessed. Where was there mother? Who was this woman? And all of these...people? Where did they come from? All thirteen of them came out of nowhere. But the look in their eyes meant trouble and Nico was finally able to come back to his senses, even if fear still ate at him. He grabbed his sister's arm. "Come on, we got to go! Run...run!"

They ran to get away from the creepy and ominous group of golden and orange-eyed people. They yelped when suddenly, out of thin air, one of the people in the black coats appeared in front of them, making the twins fault in their tracks. The man's golden eyes seemed to pierce into their souls, they were so cold. He crossed his arms over his chest and behind him appeared a pitch black monster that had broken bounds all over its body. Aeris' heart nearly stopped to see that the monster was the same one from her dream. How could this be? So far, in these so little hours, elements from Aeris' dream, or nightmare, had come to play in the real world. It made her think that this was just a continuation of the nightmare and soon she'll wake up to be in her shared room, her brother still snoring and sleeping peacefully with his rump in the air...but that was too much to ask for. No matter how hard Aeris prayed for this to not be real, they were answered with the harsh reality and truth: this nightmare is real life. This...was all real.

Nico tugged her to turn around. "This way!" He shouted, making Aeris jump out of her terror. He stopped to see that the others were closing in on them too. They were trapped, surrounded. Nowhere to run. Nico's grip on Aeris' arm tightened. He was afraid too. He started to back away from the group then he looked over his shoulder, seeing that the monster of darkness was still there. His frightened gaze returned to the main group. "Wh-what do you people want?" He demanded. "We won't hurt you, if that's what you're thinking! We mean no harm…just…just let us go!"

One of the people in the coats spoke up, he pulled down his hood, revealing his fiery red hair and his orange eyes. His face was littered with freckles. "Ah, but ya see, lad," he spoke in a thick Scottish accent.

The person standing next to him pulled down his hood as well. He looked like he was a clone of the other man. Twins, maybe? "You an' yer sista bein' alive and witnessin' our return…" He clicked his tongue. "Now, we can't tha happenin' now, can we?"

"Plus it'll be good ta have some leverage with your Da," the other one added. His twin nodded in agreement.

Aeris stared at them. "Our…? You mean…" her eyes widened. "You're kidnapping us?!"

One of the twins bobbed his head around, his eyebrows high and making a face. "Eh…in a way…"

The woman spun around and growled at the twins, "Enough!"

The two jumped and smiled and laughed nervously. "Sorry," one of them said.

The woman growled at them and turned to Nico and Aeris, a wicked smile growing. She outstretched her hand and with a dark burst of flame, a black and red key-shaped sword appeared in her hand. She took a step towards the twins, the tip of the sword dragging against the wood of the bridge. With a yell, she lunged forward, her sword raised high.

The Heart twins yelped in surprise when they were suddenly swept off of their feet. They found themselves on the beach below, some distance away from the bridge. But when they saw what swept them from danger, they held back their screeches of horror. It was a giant ghostly blood-red fox-shaped demon. It stared at them for a few moments and then nodded before turning around to the group of thirteen, growling. The twins quickly got up from the ground and to their feet, ready to run. But then they saw who was running up the shore line.

It was a group of three adults, one male and two females, all three of them in their early thirties. One of the females was wearing a long pink dress with long sleeves, the shoulder were yet bare, belts and zippers going every which way. Over it was a red corset. She was carrying a red staff that had a simple white orb at it's tip. Her hair was the color of a ruby and her eyes were dark blue. Beside her was the male with spiky brown hair and his eyes were just as blue. He wore a black jacket over a blue zip-up hoodie, tucked in black pants that had way too many pockets. But the other female was the most bizarre. She was wearing a sleeveless red dress that opened up the sides with a gold flower decals going up the side. The dress was showing her legs and her black shorts. Here comes the weird, her legs weren't human at all. They were furry and bent like a quarter rest. They were a brown-orange color with jet black stripping. The inside of her legs were white. Her feet were paws shaped as a normal foot that was on its tiptoes. A brown-orange tail that was striped black as well was twitching, irritated. Half way up her arms was the same way as her legs, furry and striped. You could see that instead of finger nails, she had claws. Like the other female, she was carrying a red staff but it looked like it could stab someone just as good as a sword. If not better. The twins instantly recognized the red-haired woman and the man as Aunt Kairi and Uncle Sora. But they had no idea who the tiger-lady was. But her light blue eyes and silvery hair was recognizable.

"Crystal?" Nico wondered aloud.

Crystal looked over to them and her tail twitched. "I am sorry that you witnessed Len and I's monstrosities…"

"Len?" Aeris stared at the fox. " _That's_ Len?" Len, full name Len Petatonix, was a twenty-some year old man that had bronze-ish blonde hair and green eyes. He used to babysit the twins when they were younger and was a dear friend to their parents.

Sora rushed over to the twins and looked over them. "Are you hurt?"

"No…Uncle Sora, what's going on?" Nico questioned. "Who are those people?"

Kairi shook her head. "We can't explain right now. All you need to know is that they're dangerous—"

"And they shouldn't be around," Crystal growled. She twirled her staff and slammed the butt of it on the sand, a bubble forming around the twins. A crystal barrier. "Stay in there."

"Wh—?!" Aeris banged against the crystal. "Hey! Let us out!"

Sora shook his head. He held out his hand and with a beam of light, a key-shaped sword appeared in his hand. It was like the woman's but it was silver and gold and it had a key-chain shaped like a mouse head dangling from the hand guard. "I'm sorry but this isn't your fight."

"And it's for your own good," Kairi added. Her eyes were locked on the group of thirteen people, some who started to advance towards them. The grip on her staff became tighter, her knuckles turning white. "This won't end well, I won't lie to you…"

Crystal nodded and turned around quickly, spinning her staff above her head like a tornado. Sparks started to form from it. "And you will most likely not see any of us again…but if we do…well, you know."

"What are you doing?" Nico asked frantically.

"Stay safe," Sora told them over his shoulder. He went into a fighting stance when suddenly, the woman in the black coat teleported only feet away from them, a crazed look on her face. "A great darkness is coming, Nico and Aeris. Nothing will be the same…your world will be flipped upside down…" he looked at them real quickly, regret in his eyes. "And watch my daughter."

"Wait! Uncle Sora—!" The twins protests didn't last long. Crystal thrusted her arms forward, the electricity she charged zapping the barrier that protected the twins. Everything went to white as darkness consumed the others.

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Ugh, sorry for the delay and sorry for this chapter...it is not well written...


	5. Chapter 5: Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Hello, wow, it has been a long time, hasn't it? Sorry for such a long delay...writing for me doesn't come as easily as it used to, and so does motivation. Especially when you are no longer insterested into writing a story. But, I got this started, since 2012, and I will finish it, even though I don't have the motivation to write anymore. But without a further ado, let's get this show on the road.

*the only characters I own are: Katie Heart, Aeris Heart, Nico Heart, Tiaxek, Ixulos, Xalgon, Xolweyf, and many others who have not shown up yet or do not appear in this chapter. All other characters belong to their rightful owners.

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The corridors were unusually dark, the white walls and ceilings turning to a tint of grey. Even the pulsating decals that covered the halls and rooms were not pulsing their light, they weren't even pulsing at all. Not even the gentle humming of the device that keeps the castle floating wasn't sounding. Something…it felt…wrong. The atmosphere was tense and dark, more dark than usual. The elite members took notice of the change, and they knew something was wrong…they didn't know what to do, however. This has never happened in the castle before. The meeting was called off ages ago, the corridors now empty.

Suddenly, a small clicking echoed through the halls, a hooded figure almost melted against the shadows. It stopped its walk looking around, a white toothed smile flashed devilishly at the sight of the different atmosphere of the castle. It continued its trek down the halls, its heeled boots clicking softly against the hard floors. It almost stopped again when it heard more footsteps come down the hall, towards it. It was another cloaked figure, but its hood was up, their silver hair and golden eyes contrasting greatly with the darkness. As it came closer to the hooded figure, he scowled and his eyes narrowed. "And where are you heading to?" They both halted their walk, only inches away from each other.

The hooded figure shrugged its shoulders. "What? I'm not allowed to take a stroll now?"

"To the Master's room?" The young man questioned, his arms crossing over his chest distrustfully.

"And I can't talk to the boss, either? Really?" The hooded figures voice was hinted with annoyance. It bounced on its tiptoes, looking down at the ground as it mumbled, "You're a real hard-ass, _Xehanort._ " It spoke his name with venom. It returned its gaze back him. "What, are you going to stop me?"

"I just might…" Xehanort growled. He jabbed a finger towards it. "Just because you brought us all back, it doesn't mean you get free reign, Number XIII."

"Oh-ho…that so?" It mirrored Xehanort's stance, then leaned back a little. "What's with all the suspicion?"

"The castle has been acting…different. And I, along with the elite members, began to notice that wherever you go, the castle changes."

"What, so a castle acting weird is now my fault? It's just a building; it shouldn't have a preference to whom it likes or not as they walk through it."

Anger and agitation rose from the young Xehanort. "This castle is our home, and it does not welcome you, Number—"

"XIII," it spat. "I know, I know, I'm the lowest ranking member of the Organization. But that doesn't mean that I'm unwelcome. Just remember who brought you all back, Xehanort, and that I have some upgrades since the last time I awoken." It stepped closer to Xehanort, making him take a step back with every advancing step towards him. "I have the ability to tap into your powers and use them for myself. I am the embodiment of this organization, like it or not. You are all tied to me. Now. Get out of my way." It purposely bumped into Xehanort, shoving him out of the way with its shoulder. "I can go where I want, and whenever I please," it growled. Xehanort watched her leave and sighed heavily and with frustration. He turned on his heel and continued on his way. The hooded figure looked over its shoulder and let out a relieved sigh before grinning evilly. "Oh how close, you are from the truth, yet so far…"

It turned the corner and saw two identical cloaked figures, their skin pale and littered with freckles. Their blazing red hair made them stick out like a sore thumb. They saw the hooded figure coming down the hallway and pushed themselves off of the wall they were leaning against. One of them said, "It's 'bout time ya showed up, lass."

"We were wonderin' if yer caught 'r somethin', " the other added. Both of their voices were still thick with a Scottish accent, after all this time.

"I almost did." The hooded figure brought down her hood, revealing her long silver hair and golden eyes. "Young Xehanort was getting suspicious of me." She cracked a wicked smirk. "And how right is to be…" she looked at the twin on the right. "Ixulos, is the newbie ready?"

He nodded. "Itching ta go, lass, he's hidin' in the Master's room, ready to strike at yer command."

"I can't believe that you were able to get 'im to agree ta work with ya, ma'am," Ixulos' twin said. "He seems ta be the type ta take control o' everythin'."

"It is not like that, Xalgon," she assured him. "He just likes chaos…watch the world burn, as some would say."

"And he'll listen to ya?"

"He recognizes that he no power over me, yet I can cause destruction wherever I walk, which he enjoys greatly," she sent them a smile. "He comes from a world where it took everything from him, even his soul. He needs a guide, which shall be me."

"He sort o' can't follow ya, literally, in tha'…uh…."

"That matter will fix itself, once it has been done." The woman put her hands on her hips. "Will anyone else see our cause?"

Xalgon shook his head. "No. No one will see our cause, they are blinded." He smiled. "But don't worry, we took care of them as soon as they uttered a 'no'."

"Then it won't be long until the… _elite members_ notice what our goal is." She stepped to the side. "Go. Take care of them."

They saluted her. "Aye!" One of them transformed into a large orange and black scythe, the other catching it. He melted into the shadows.

She smiled and chuckled darkly. She made her way to the end of the hall, to a large door. She opened the door without knocking, confusing the resident inside. "Hello, Master Xehanort."

He stood slowly from his seat. "Tiaxek. What are you doing here?"

"Just coming to say hello, is that such a problem?" She asked him. She stepped into the room, closing the door behind her. She glanced into the suddenly darkening room, seeing a pair of red four-sided diamond shaped eyes open in the dark behind the Organization's leader. She smiled and her gaze went back to Master Xehanort. "You seem tired, you should be given a break." She wielded her Keyblade, her smile curling into the devil's smile. Her eyes flashed wickedly.

Master Xehanort wielded his own Keyblade. "What is the meaning of this, Tiaxek? You know that if I am eliminated, everything is reset?"

"Oh, I remember clearly what happened the last time we were hear, when the brat slayed you," Tiaxek looked at her blade. "All of us, including I, went inside her, but guess what? She is gone…and I know how to get past your little failsafe…" She scraped the sharp tip of her Keyblade on the floor, making sparks fly off the tiles.

Master Xehanort eyes narrowed at the move. He gasped when suddenly, something wrapped around his leg, he looked down to see a thick green vine. He raised his Keyblade to slice it off, but another vine shot out of the darkness and wrapped tightly around his wrist, forcing him to disarm. His heart skipped a beat when he heard a demon-like laugh come from the darkness. Multiple vines shot from the shadows, wrapping tightly around him on his arms and legs. He gasped for air when one wrapped around his neck and squeezed. His eyes burned, his lungs screamed for air as his airways got crushed. He watched Tiazek approach him slowly. He gurgled and spat out blood when he felt the blade stab him through the heart. He watched his heart float of his chest, a dark orb. Before anything could happen, before anything could reset, Tiaxek grabbed it, crushing it in her hand. The shards of darkness shot everywhere, circling around Tiaxek, until they absorbed into her body. She howled a haunting laugh, the last thing Xehanort heard before the last of life slipped away. His once stiff, struggling body went limp. The vines released, his body thudding on the floor.

"Good job…" Tiaxek told to the shadows, as the vines extracted. "You are now a member of New Organization…as Number IV. Now…what are you waiting for?" she motioned at Xehanort's broken body. "Take you prize…"

"That's a wonderful idea!" The high-pitched demon-like voice exclaimed before cackling. Vines slithered on the floor, towards Master Xehanort's body.

Tiaxek's attention went to the door when she heard screams of the dying. She smiled larger. Her plan was becoming complete…she could feel herself become stronger when another member was slayed. She then felt something wrong. She scowled. "No, no…he's…" She punched the wall, making a large crater in it. "NO ONE ESCAPES FROM ME!" She spun around, finding a green-skinned, leafy figure with yellow hair, shaped like flower petals. She pointed to the hall that was behind her. "Xolweyf! Get Young Xehanort! No one of the old elites shall live!"

Xolweyf nodded and shrunk down, into the ground. Tiaxek could see his vines go into the floor and move under the tiles. Tiaxek growled, "I will get you, Xehanort! Soon, there will nowhere for you to hide…this universe…is _mine…_ "

* * *

There, a chapter finished! Again, sorry for such a long delay...writing is hard for me now. I just don't have the motivation or energy to do it. Plus, my love for Kingdom Hearts isn't as strong as it used to be, so it makes it even harder to write for this story. What I think I will do for this story is that it'll just be a short one, not very many world visits, if any at all. I know, it's weird. But I want to get to the ending fast. You guys have stuck with this saga for such a long time, and I will do my best to give you a great story, even though I do not want to continue this story any more. Thank you so much for sticking with me, and this chapter goes to my girlfriend, who gives me a new found motivation I didn't have before :) Leave a review if you like. See you later and high-five.


	6. Chapter 6: Strangers

Hey. Long time no see. It's been...shit, like over a year since the last time I've updated? Jesus, I am the worst. I'm sorry. Life's been a bitch and I went down a very dark road, and it's slowly starting to brighten again. To be honest, I thought this story arc is dead. But it wouldn't be right to the people who like this series (if there are any of you left that is...) I've to put it on a screeching halt and never finish it. So, with that being said, here's another chapter.

* * *

Aeris landed with a hard thud on her back. Her eyesight was going in and out, her ears ringing. She pressed her palm onto her temple as she blinked the stars and static away. A low pained grown escaped her as she got up to her feet, weight shifting from side to side as the world spun around her. Her purple-tinted silvery hair whipped back and forth when she shook her head and brushed her bangs behind her ears so she could see. Her electric blue eyes widened when she saw her twin face down on the brick pavement. "Nico!" she yelped.

Nico groaned at the call of his name before getting on his hands and knees. His fluffed up chocolate brown hair wiggled at the small shake he made and got up to his feet. "Ugh…I feel like I went through a roller coaster that's made out of just loopty-loops…" he bowed his head and rested his palms on his knees.

Aeris hurried over to him, placing her hand on his back. "You alright?"

"Yeah…just give me a minute," Nico assured his sister. He took in a deep breath and straightened up. His dark blue eyes narrowed at their surroundings. "Where…where are we…?"

Aeris glanced around. They seemed to be in an alley, a metal gate behind them and a brick walls on each side. On the back wall was a green dumpster, which smelled of rotten peaches and chicken…and, well, garbage. The sky was black, not a star or moon in sight. The only light the twins had was from a street lamp on the other side of the gate. She headed over to the gate and jiggled the bars. "Locked."

Nico appeared at her side and looked through the bars. He pointed at the edge of the gate. "Hey, there's a latch." He tried to stick his arm through the bars but sighed. "The stupid bars are too close together…maybe…I can hoist you over?"

"Are you sure? It's a little tall…"

Nico waved it off. "Bah, that's nothing—"

"You aren't exactly the tallest—"

Nico's face turned bright red at Aeris' interrupt. " _I_ am _not_ short."

"You're 5"." Aeris told him. "I'm 5'4"."

"So? That's only four inches," Nico grumbled. He hooked his hands together, getting on one knee. "Just climb up, please."

Aeris rolled her eyes at him. "You gotta accept the truth at some point." She placed her foot on his locked hands. She grimaced in embarrassment; realizing that she was still in her night clothes. Pink bunny slippers, black short shorts, and a white button up shirt that was way too large for her, her hands where the elbow of the shirt. Her brother was still in his pjs, too. Long plaid blue and black pants…and a tight black t-shirt around his upper chest. The both of them were still soaked from the rainstorm on the island, making their hair and clothes stick to their skin like glue. When they figure out where they are, they definitely need to fix their wardrobe. She grabbed the top of the gate as her brother lifted her up and with a grunt, she hoisted her body over the gate and jumping down to the other side. The latch creaked ominously when she lifted it from the bars.

Nico pushed the gate open, joining her. He motioned his head to the side, before heading down the alley way. Aeris noticed the cobblestone that they were walking on, it being vaguely familiar to her, as well as the old brick buildings that outlined the alley. At the alley, there was an old lamppost, am oil burning one. It reminded her of the lamppost in her mother's favorite book from her World. She couldn't remember what the book was called, all she could recall was a talking lion. She was snapped from her thoughts when her brother's arm stopped her tracks and dragging her to the side. Before she could say anything, Nico covered her mouth and glanced over the pile of crates they were hiding behind. His head darted back into cover, his eyes sliding over to his sister before pressing his index finger on his lips. Aeris nodded in understanding, but couldn't help but think on how the tables had turned, Nico telling her to be quiet instead of her telling him that. She noticed that he slowly grabbed a tire iron that was resting against one of the boxes. "What are you—?"

"Sh!" Nico whispered. With hesitation, he left the hiding spot, leaving Aeris to scrabble after him. One foot after another, Nico snuck up behind the twitching pitch black creature. With a grunt, he swung the tire iron, smacking the creature on the head. He jumped backwards when the creature suddenly stopped twitching and turned to face him and his sister, its beady yellow eyes looking through them. The twins screeched when it jumped at them. "Go! Go, go, go, go!" Nico yelped. He grabbed Aeris' arm and threw the iron at the creature before making a break for it.

Aeris turned to see over her shoulder and her eyes widened, before yelling at Nico, "It's catching up!"

"I know, I know, I know!" Nico answered frantically. He skidded to a halt and pointed at another alley. "This way!" He tugged his sister behind him. They ran though the alley, weaving through its complex corridors. But to the last of their luck, they reached a dead end. They turned slowly, their backs against the tall brick wall behind them, watching the creature approach. Under his breath, Nico muttered, "You shouldn't have thrown that, Nico…" He stepped in front of Aeris, an arm extended out protectively, as the creature got closer. Hairs on his neck stood up at a whooshing he heard, a feeling similar to what he felt on the island washed over him.

The twins jerked backwards when a red beam of light hit the creature square in the face. They watched it melt into the ground, the black goo it left behind bubbled before vaporizing into thin air, as if it never happened. They went to step forward but paused when they heard a mechanical click. "Ah, ah, ah, where do you think you're going?" The twins slowly turned around and look up to see who spoke. "We got an unsettled score, Ti—" A man was standing on top of the building that made the dead end of the alleyway. They couldn't get a good enough look at his face, but they could see that he had long black hair in the form a mullet and he had a huge gash on his left cheek. "Oh. You're not her." He jumped down from the roof, landing in front of the twins. With the tall man in front of them, they could now see that his eyes were hazel in color, even though his right eye was hiding behind a black eyepatch that looked like it belonged to a stereotypical pirate. He was wearing a strange grey uniform and a red scarf that was ripped in some places. In his white gloved hands were strange looking silver crossbows. He squinted at Aeris, making the wrinkles around his eyes deepen. "Wow. I really need to get my eye checked. Definitely not her. And here I had this revenge speech all planned out in my head." His eye glanced over to Nico. "Huh. You kinda look like her though, minus the murder-eyes—" His thin eyebrows arched up. "Wait, whoa, hang on a sec…" He looked at Aeris again. "You look like Drowned Gold-Fish's friend…Miku? No, that's not right, Kiku?...It ended with 'iku'…"

"Riku?" Aeris asked.

"Bingooooo…." The man attached his crossbows on his back. "That was it."

"That's our dad," Nico explained.

"Dad?" The man repeated. "Oh…" He laughed. "Now I know what's going on…you're that woman's kids!" He leaned against the alley's wall. "Well, aren't you two just lucky! If I wasn't forced to leave, I would have captured you by now." He shrugged his shoulders. "Oh well."

"Capture us?" Aeris and Nico looked at each other. "Why…?"

"I dunno. Old news. History that doesn't matter. Yadda, yadda, yadda. Anyway, since I saved both of your asses from that Heartless, you have a debt to me now." The man pulled out a cigarette from his pocket and lighted it. "And before you ask, I have a…friend who came to this town with me. But on the way here, we got separated. How, I have no idea, but in return for saving your lives, _and_ not giving two craps on capturing you…you need to help me find him." He sucked on his cigarette before adding, "Oh, and another thing. I noticed that you two don't really have a means to defend yourself so…think of it as a perk that I will protect your butts whenever something…undesirable crosses our path."

The twins looked at each other once more, debating mentally whether or not to help the possible crazy man. It was Aeris that finally said, "I…guess that's fair…"

"Sweet." The man pushed himself off the wall and flicked his cigarette to the ground before he grinded it into the cobblestone with his boot. He walked to the twins, holding his hands out to them. "Name's Braig."

"Nico."

"Aeris." The twins shook his hands.

"Awesome, we know everyone's names. Yippee. Now come on, little buddies, let's go find my friend."

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Leave a review to let me know what you think!


	7. Chapter 7: Dark on Me

The twins followed the strange man named Braig through the empty streets of Transverse Town, the twins learned. From what Braig said, Transverse Town was a safe-haven for residents of lost worlds. And unlike their world or any other world, Transverse Town can't fall to the darkness…but it could be attacked. The creature that attacked them was called a "heartless", a creature manifested from the darkness in someone's heart that has recently died. The thought alone that a person could turn into these…monsters scared the twins. Never in their lives they heard of such a thing and to make matters worse, their parents knew and _fought_ these creatures a long time ago. Why would they hide such a thing to them, Aeris wondered. It was probably to protect them, to let them believe that the horrors of the worlds would never manifest again. This seemed to surprise Braig.

"So…you mean to tell me that your parents, vanquishers of darkness of whatever they call themselves, never told you about the Heartless?"

Nico shook his head. "No. Never."

"What the hell do they tell you then?"

"Missions on other worlds," Aeris answered. "For the Keyblade Masters."

"Ah, so you know about Keyblades, huh?"

Nico shook his head. "Not really. All we know it's a weapon of some kind."

Braig sputtered his lips. "Jesus, did your parents just put you in a glass box that sad 'fragile' or something?" He muttered something under his breath as he tapped a cigarette box on his wrist, grabbing the small white and yellow tube with his teeth and lighted it. He took a couple puffs before adding, "Okay. Crash course with Braig. Keyblades are…weapons, like fuzz-head—"

"Hey!"

"—said. They are crafted to defeat things made of darkness. And like the name, they are keys that could open any lock. Even a lock on a world." He glanced his shoulder to see confusion in the twins. He let out a long groan. "Aaaaaand that went right over heads. Great. Okay. Uh…long story short, their weapons only a select few can use. They beat the crap out of heartless and unlock doors. Story time over."

"Then what was that dark stuff we saw at home?" Aeris asked Braig. At the raise of his eyebrow, she continued, "It was like it was some kind of fog, or a monster that had some kind of rage to it…was that Heartless?"

"Uh…no. That is a totally different thing," Braig answered. He flicked his cigarette away, crushing it with his boot as he walked over it. The twins avoided it. "Look, kiddo, that is a conversation for another day. Probably left for someone more qualified than me." He turned to face the twins, stopping their progress in the empty streets. "All that matters right now is finding my friend. Or at least find someone to take you two in. Whatever comes first. My friend preferably the first thing—" His head snapped back when he heard a noise. He reached behind his back as he turned, grabbing his crossbows. "Which one of you has the best shot?"

"Uh…Aeris always beats me at _Duck Hunt_ —"

"Have no idea what that is but good enough." Braig tossed Aeris one of his crossbows as their shadows bubbled. "Don't but your finger on the trigger until you know what you're shooting at. Those things sting like hell if you get shot."

Nico's eyes widened. "What, wait—?!"

"Heartless incoming, squirts!" Braig yelled. He looked at Aeris. "Show me what you got, Silver."

The nickname surprised Aeris, since she was still processing why she was given a crossbow. "Excuse me—?" As soon as the first Heartless appeared, he opened fire, making it poof into a black cloud. The black cloud swirled against the ground, making the street dark. The cloud collapsed on itself before exploding, the dark purple particles going everywhere. A sea of Heartless arose and came out of the walls of buildings. Their heads and hands twitched demonically, their beady eyes staring at the three. Without any warning, they lunged. Aeris' pupils shrank at the sight, her teeth clenching tightly. She slowly rose her borrowed crossbow and trigger. Red bolts of lightning zipped out of the barrel, turning the Heartless to dust. But with every shot she and Braig made, it seemed to make the Heartless multiply. She yelped when a Heartless jumped at her, clawing at her legs, trying to climb. Nico ripped the Heartless off of his sister and stomped on its head. They glanced at Braig, who was picking off Heartless with ease. Out of the corner of her eye, Aeris saw the Heartless massing into a vortex. She ran over to him, her brother hot on her tail as she shot at passerby. "Braig! Behind you!"

Braig spun around and gasped lightly. "Oh…shi…" He charged up his crossbow and fired multiple shots at once. The bullets surrounded the vortex and hit the heartless, red light shooting through each one, making the tornado crumble. But it wasn't enough. More Heartless added onto the tornado, making it grow slowly. Knowing that he couldn't take them on, he grabbed Aeris' arm with his free hand. "Forward!" He burst into a sprint, with the twins in tow. He fired the ground ahead of them, getting the cobblestone become visible for a moment. Aeris took his example, firing over her shoulder at the Heartless. Their path they made behind them turning dark, only seeing a mass of yellow eyes staring at them hungrily.

Worry filled Nico's voice as the Heartless came closer and closer, "U-Uh…Braig…?!"

"There!" They continued to run, Braig put his crossbow away to reach a handle. He hauled a tall door open. "Go!" He stepped to the side so the twins could get in first. As soon as they came through, Braig closely followed. The door slammed shut behind him. Aeris pointed her crossbow at the door banged from the other side, the Heartless trying to get through. The wooden door creaked under the stress, the large bolts shaking with each impact. The three backed away from the door.

Aeris froze when she felt two small circles embedded into her back. A mature female voice commanded behind her, "Drop your weapons. Now." Hesitantly, Braig and Aeris dropped their weapons. "Now turn around. Slowly. Hands behind your head."

Aeris gulped as she, Nico, and Braig placed their hands behind their heads. They turned slowly to see a young woman, maybe in her early twenties standing before them. She had on a light purple shirt with darker purple long sleeves and jeans. Her skin was tawny in color and her striking yellow eyes pierced through the shadow her white and purple hat made. In her hands was a shotgun. "World."

"Uh…what?"

"World." The woman repeated. "Which world are you from?"

It was Nico that stammered, "U-Uh, we're from the…the Destiney Islands."

The woman's eyes widened and slowly lowered her own weapon. "Destiney Island…?" She glanced between the twins. "There are survivors…?" She unloaded her gun and placed the shells on her pocket, resting the gun on her shoulder. "Are the Masters with you?" When she saw the confused glances of the twins. "Master Sora? Master Katie?"

"Master Katie?" Aeris repeated. "As in Katie Heart?"

"Yes. You know them?"

Nico nodded. "Katie is our mom."

"Your…?" The woman squinted at Nico before they widened. "Oh my…you're…you're the Heart Twins. My name is Clementine. I'm a friend of your mom's. Come on. The others would want to see you."

"Others?" Nico repeated.

Clementine nodded. "We thought…we thought you were all dead."


	8. Chapter 8: Survivors

Compared to the other district, District 1 of Traverse Town was brightly lit and the twins couldn't walk two feet without bumping into someone. The sidewalks felt…claustrophobic. The overlapping chatter was a low buzzing noise. Most were humans, their ages varying…but to the twins disbelief, there were lions, dragons, animals that walked and talked like humans…Aeris even saw fairies and elves in the mix.

Clementine's voice broke the twins awe, "They are all refugees, their homes destroyed by the Darkness…like us. All of them are from different worlds…and…not very many it out."

Aeris' eyes pulled away from the crowd to look at Clementine, who was leading them. "What…what do you mean...?"

"When the Darkness came, it was relentless. It took anyone in its path…no one stood a chance. I…watched so many people die. I only made it our because I was in the right place at the right time." She let out a sigh before she added, "That Heartless hoard in the other districts?" Clementine's voice hardened, becoming cold, "Sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers…the Darkness did that to them. Turned them into those monsters. Killing them wasn't enough for them."

"You mean…" Nico swallowed.

"Exactly." Clementine let out a huff of air, scratching the back of her neck. "The fallen became the enemy. Each Heartless is someone that someone knows." She shook her head hard, trying to get the though away from her memory. She turned to face the twins, and her eyes got big when she saw Braig. "Oh. Sorry, I forgot you here."

Braig shrugged, digging into his pocket to grab another cigarette. "Nah, don't worry about it, kid. Just here for a ride." He took a few puffs before asking, "Uh…have you had a refugee that has somewhat spikey hair that's grey? Big eyes, like yours? Around your age?"

Clementine thought for a moment, then shook her head. "Not that I know of. Maybe you can ask the other watchmen? Xion runs the other door on the east side of town, Denzel runs the west side, and Marlene runs the south side watchtower."

"Xion, huh?" Braig rubbed his chin. "Okay, thanks." He turned around and went to leave.

"W-Wait!" Nico ran over to Braig. "You're not coming with us?"

"Nah, you guys seem good with Shotgun, here. Besides, I had my own agenda, remember." He walked away, waving goodbye as he went on his way. "Catch ya later, kiddos."

"Your friend is odd." Clementine said as he walked away. "But if he wants to go back to the other districts, it's his funeral. Plus, I hate smokers." She bobbed her head to the side. "C'mon. The others would like to talk to you." Before she continued, she glanced between the two. "…After we get you a new set of clothes. Can't meet anyone in wet jammies, right?"

In the corner of Aeris' eye, she saw her brother grimace. She turned slightly, to see him better. His jaw was clentched and fear was in his eyes. For a moment, Aeris couldn't understand why Nico was acting like this then it hit her. He gave him a pat on the shoulder and said quietly, "Don't worry, Nico. We'll find everything you need." She looked up to see Clementine with her head cocked to the side, unsure what to make of Nico's reaction. "Uh…Clementine? Can you just…take us to the apparel store? You don't have to accompany us."

"Yeah." She led them deeper in District One, to what seemed to be the main square. Down below them was a large opening, with large doors facing south, east, and west. In this open area where two small gardens. On the west side was a restaurant, all the tables filled with customers. There were these strange white things that looked like teddy bears with bat wings and giant red noses that fluttered frantically to table to table and inside of the restaurant. Aeris thought that they were cute. Up a level, on the level that the three were on, was a shop with a sign of red neon, it simply said 'item'. Clementine stopped the twins in front a large store that had a large _fleur-de-lis_ shaped sign that said 'jewerly'. Above the doors was a sign that said 'accessories'. "Here you go. They mostly have armor and things like that, but I bet you'll be able to find something!" She pointed at a apartment building to east. "I'll be there. Just go ahead in and I'll be right there. I have to call a meeting, anyways."

"What kind of meeting?" Nico inquired.

Clementine shrugged. "Well, you'll find out when you show up, anyways, right?" She left the twins. "See you—oh wait." She dug into her pocket and brought out a medium sized purple pouch with white draw strings. She tossed it to Nico, who fumbled to catch it. "Munny. Don't cause me to be broke now." She headed her way to the apartments, disappearing from the twin's line of sight once she went back up another level.

Nico stared at the munny pouch in his hand and sighed. "Let's get this done over with."

It took awhile for the twins to find attire that suited them, Nico having a harder time than Aeris. Aeris sighed as she heard mumbled cursing from the trying stall adjacent from hers. She turned a little looking at her new outfit in the mirror. She was now wearing a leather breastplate, a zipper was in the center for easy removal, that was light brown in color with two silver pauldrons connected to it with gold symbols of the sun. On the silver pauldrans was a gold northern star with a red jewel in the center. Coming out from her pauldrons were two red belts, on each side of her arm, connecting to light salmon arm warmers. Under her leather breastplate was a hot pink shirt that was open on the sides, similar to a _cheongsam_ , with darker pink swirling designs along with a red belt fastened right under her rib cage. The _cheongsam_ went to almost her knees. She had on light purple shorts with a with a white belt. Her boots were brown, the laces pink. Around her neck was a hot pink choker with the Mark of Mastery pendent on it, along with a short silver chain that went under the pendant to the back of the choker. She had a headband matching her choker. Aeris made a small smile at herself before she tightened her pony tail. She opened the door and knocked on Nico's. "You doing okay?"

The grumbling stopped and the stall's door slowly opened. He had on a simple grey shirt underneath a black short sleeved long-coat that was outlined with deep red, the hoodie the same color. On his left arm was a gold piece of armor, the pauldron had a silver crescent moon on it, that went all the way to his fingers, but his palm was exposed. On the other arm was a black fingerless glove what went just below the elbow with a red belt. His gray shirt was partially tucked into his plain blue jeans that had white belts, two small belts on each leg, a normal belt, and another hanging from that belt. Under his messy hair was a red bandana, which was branded with a silver Mark of Mastery. His was tugging at his shirt, letting out small wheezes each time he did so. "Hang on…this stupid thing…!"

Aeris clicked her tongue and shook her head. "You have it on too tightly again…come here." Nico threw his head back and let out a long, loud groan before turning around to have his back at his sister. She pulled down his neckline and reached down. "Quit squirming!"

"Your hands are cold!" Nico complained.

"Just hang on a sec…" Aeris mumbled as she searched around for the clips. She let out a chirp of triumph before making the piece of clothing a size larger. She pulled away from her brother. "Better?"

"Yeah…I can actually breathe now…" He let out a huff of air and then smiled at her. "Thanks."

"Now what have I told you?" As she continued, her brother joined in in a monotone voice, "Putting it on too tight can cause bodily harm."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, I know. I just…"

"I know, Nic. Don't worry about it. I can't tell, by the way."

"Good. The less questions the better." Nico stepped out of the stall, with Aeris right behind him. They paid for their new clothes and headed for the apartment building Clementine told them to meet her in. "What do you think this meeting Clementine mentioned will be about?"

Aeris thought for a moment before responding, "Earlier, she said about something that we were all…'dead.' Maybe the meeting about how we survived? Or tell them what happened? Or maybe both…I guess we'll find out." Aeris opened the apartment building's door, letting Nico go in first. The complex' lobby seemed new and modern, unlike the rest of the town. The floors were checkered black and white marble tiles, leading their way to end of the loby where a black staircase and a silver elevator resided. On each side of the room were doorways, trimmed with gold. The Mark of Mastery was above each doorway.

"There you guys are." Clementine approached them from behind a golden desk. "Follow me."

The hallway seemed to pulsate in the image of chains and the Mark of Mastery. It creeped the twins a little, not knowing what to think of this little detail on the walls. The hallway was also lined with tall marble columns, casting great dark shadows on the floor. Nico gulped before saying, "Erm…n-nice architecture…."

Clementine nodded. "Yeah. I always liked this place. Did you know that this building is new? It grows larger and larger as more and more refugees appear. It's like the town wants to make sure that everyone is accommodated. I guess I like so much is because it reminds me of the secret room that I liked to play in when I was younger. I lived there with the rest of the Restoration Committee."

"Restoration Committee?" Aeris repeated. "What's that?"

"They were in charge of, well restoring my world. It's called Radiant Garden."

"With a name like that, it had to be beautiful as it sounds," Nico commented.

Clementine chuckled a little, "Yeah…it was a giant flower garden, the most beautiful roses and cherry blossoms and lilies…the list goes on and on. The buildings were brick, and a large castle over looked it all." She let out a huff of air, "But…that's all gone now…" She and the twins stood before a tall white door, the Marks of Mastery carved into the double doors. "Here we are." She opened them and inside was a lounge of some kind, with five people inside, most of them seemed to be in their thirties, except for one man that were probably in his 70s. "Aeris, Nico, this is Leon, Yuffie, Tifa, Cloud, and Cid. They are the rest of the Restoration Committee, along with myself."

The man named Leon approached the twins. "It has been awhile since I have seen you two," he stated. "You were just ankle-bitters back then."

"Where are the others, Clem?" Asked Tifa.

"They should be here soon," Clementine answered, sitting on the couch next to Yuffie.

Right on cue, the doors opened behind the twins to reveal a large of people. But on in particular stood out to them…

"DAD!"


	9. Chapter 9: Dearly Beloved

At the sound of the alternative name he was given all those years ago, Riku let out a small gasp and pushed his way through the small crowd. In front of him was his kids. He made a sharp intake of air and the corners of his mouth curled up. His smile was so large, his teeth showed. He let out a small laugh and ran over to them, bringing his arms tightly around them. His embrace became tighter when he felt the twins arms go around his torso and neck, returning it. He held them for awhile, trying to hold back his tears. He could barely see thanks to welling tears. He finally closed his eyes, squeezing them shut. He felt the tears roll down his face. Riku couldn't believe it. From all the rumors...he never expected to see his family again. It was a dream too him, and he never wanted it to end. Aeris and Nico were safe...they were alive. He didn't want to let them go, in fear that they will slip away again. Riku could feel the others eyes on them but he did not care, he only cared his children returned to him. "You're alright..." his voice was a broken whisper. He slowly pulled away from the twins, examining them. Taking in every detail. Like him, the twins eyes were watery and the whites of their eyes were tinted pink. Nico's shoulders were shaking, his hands were trembling. He looked like he was going to fall over. Aeris' smile, her wonderful smile, was large and wide as she laughed with relief and joy. Riku brought them into his arms once more, rubbing their backs in a comforting manner. "You're alright..." he whispered.

Nico blubbered, "I-I thought—we...we...we thought that-that...we would ne-ne-never see you—"

"Hey..." Riku pulled away from the twins once more and took his son's face in his hands, wiping his tears away. "I'm here. It's okay." He glanced over to Aeris and smiled at her. He took one of his hands away from Nico and cupped Aeris' cheek, thumbing away her own tears. She returned his smile and held his hand, leaning into it and shut her eyes tightly. "I'm here now. I'm okay...you're okay...both of you." Riku stood up slowly and ruffled the twins' hair before smoothing back down. This calmed them, especially Nico. Riku wiped his own wyes with heel of his hand and sniffled. He rested his hands on the twins' shoulders. He cleared his throat before asking Leon, "Did Sarah...?"

Leon slowly shook his head. Riku let out a long sigh and hung his head. Sarah, Hikari for some, was an nine-year-old girl with reddish-brown hair and large deep blue eyes and the only child of Sora and Kairi. Her heart was large, helping in every way possible. She always had a smile on her face. The twins liked to play with Sarah on the abandoned island. Aeris would watch her brother spar with Sarah as she got a little older. Of course, Nico would go easy on her, but her strength was large, and beat Nico every time. They learned that even though she was very young, they learned Sarah wasn't one to mess with in combat. Sora saw this, too. When she turned seven, Sora started unofficial Keyblade training for her, excited to see her become a Keyblade wielder herself someday. She never wielded a Keyblade…only a blunt rapier. Kairi would always worry for Sarah, thinking that she was too young to learn how to fight; yet alone become a potential Keyblade wielder, but she saw how much her daughter enjoyed it.

Riku gripped tighter on the twins shoulders as he said, "Well…if Aeris and Nico made it, then so can Sarah. There is still hope for her…and her parents." He patted the twins before turning the three of them around to face the group people behind them. The group consisted of five men and a woman. "Aeris, Nico…this is Lea, Aqua, Ventus, Vanitas, and…well, you already know Terra."

Terra walked over to the twins, his roots of his hair starting to grey a little. He stared at the twins before giving them a small, warm smile. The twins slipped from under their father's grip to give Terra hug. He quickly returned it. Terra frequently visited them back home, sometimes unexpectedly. Their mother would always comment how far he had to travel to see them; all the way from the Land of Departure. The twins never knew what the Land of Departure was but they assumed it was another island far away from their own. During those visits, he would play with them. The sparing matches between him and Nico were always amusing to Aeris. Aeris would join in with these sessions every once and awhile, but always by Terra's insistence. He was like an uncle to them. "It's good to see you two safe," he told them. He let them go, letting the twins return to their father.

Riku looked at the man named Lea and asked him, "Where's Roxas?"

"Oh, he's running a bit behind. He had to help Yumi get a hold of Rin." He unzipped his black leather jacket and peeled it off as he walked by, revealing an orange and black sleeveless shirt underneath. He rested it on his shoulder. "They'll be here soon."

"Okay." Riku bobbed his head to the side, towards a door on the other side of the lounge which Lea was heading to. "Come on. We need…to talk about what happened."

The twins explained to the Restoration Committee and the Keyblade Masters what happened at the Destiney Islands; from the normal morning they woke up to all the way to the nightmare of a storm. Riku made a comment that the storm sounded similar to the one that happened nearly 35 years ago, back when Sora was the twins age. When they first encountered the Heartless, marking their destinies forever to become Keyblade Masters. This amazed the twins, since something so similar had happened before. But that was where they stopped. Nico continued on, "Then, on the paopu fruit island…that's...that's when we saw…Mom."

"Mom?" Aqua repeated.

Nico nodded and let out a shaky breath. Aeris gave her brother a sympathetic look, giving his hand a gentle yet comforting squeeze briefly before she added on, "Yes. She…she looked like she was in pain. Her wrist was bleeding like crazy and there was an odd pattern on her right arm. I…guess it looked like tattooed flames but they were moving! She was crying, saying that she was sorry. Then she…" Aeris rested her forehead on the heel of her hand, closing her eyes as she shook her head. "She was gone. All these people showed up, thirteen of them I think. They tried to take us. There was…this woman who looked like Mom, but…she had silver hair, gold eyes…a darker skin tone. She attacked us."

"Uncle Sora and Aunt Kairi saved us," Nico concluded, rubbing his eyes to get the mist out of them. "And that's how we ended up here."

There was a dark silence that filled the room. The tension was so great, they could cut it with a knife. The Keyblade Wielders glanced at each other, except for Riku. His head was in his hands, his eyes squeezed shut. His mouth formed into a deep frown, his lips slightly apart to show his clenched teeth. He mumbled something to himself, but the twins did not catch it. He let out a deep sigh as he lifted his head from his hands. He turned in his chair to face the twins, regret and sorrow in his eyes. "I should have told you this a long time ago. Aeris…Nico…that woman that attacked you? Her name is Tiaxek. She…she used to be your mother, a corrupted counterpart of herself."


	10. Chapter 10: Around Every Corner

Ever since she woke up, she was on the run. These…creatures were at every turn and no matter how hard she tried, she could not make peace with them. They left her no choice but to attack them. She hated it. But deep inside, she felt that she was doing the right thing. The creatures were black in color, their eyes blank yellow bulbs. They twitched unnaturally and moved unpredictably. They could also sink into the ground, becoming her own shadow and take its form. That was most scary and creepy to her. She was currently running away from herself. She glanced behind her shoulder, letting out a gasp to see that it was closing in along with its minions. With a grunt, she shot a fireball at the herd, only thinning out by a handful. She skidded around the corner, hopping about on one foot for a moment before she bolted. Her legs were aching from the constant sprit she was in, her lungs screamed for a break. Blood roared in her ears and her skin was damp with sweat. She couldn't stop. She had to keep running, no matter how exhausted she was becoming. She took another look over her shoulder and groaned in frustration to see the dark creatures still chasing her. From her finger tip, a bolt of lightning whizzed towards the herd. She let out a triumphant chortle when the shadow of herself dissolved into nothing along with a few more of the lackeys. She raised her eyebrow when she saw what looked like a heart arise from the fizzling darkness. They faded away as quick as they appeared.

She collapsed down to the hard cobblestone, laying on her back with her limps outstretched. Her pants seemed to echo around her surroundings. She gasped in a few quick breaths as she dug into her pocket and pulled out a small blue cube. She crushed it in her palm and felt the Ether's effects. It was a cool sensation, pulsing through her body until she felt normal again. She sat up slowly and wiped her forehead to get rid of sweat. "Yuck," she grumbled to herself. She got back to her feet, feeling relief when pain didn't spike through them from being overworked. She patted at her pockets, trying to find more items. "Shoot…that was the last one, I guess…" Her eyes glanced around, checking for enemies. "If more of those things shows up…my mana will be gone. Yay—" She spun around when she heard the dreaded warbled noise of the creatures portals opening. She groaned loudly and complained to herself, "You just had to say something…" She casted another Fira spell before dashing away from the creatures. She didn't even see if the spell hit the creatures or not but she really didn't care at the moment. All she knew was that she had to get away from them. She smiled when she saw another large door. She picked up the pace but she skidded to a halt when a large creature blocked her path.

Before she could do anything to attack the creature, a flash of darkness zipped between her and the creature. It twitched for a moment before disappearing, a heart floating away where it once stood. Her eyes widened to what she saw standing in front of her. It was a person! They slowly turned around to face her. It was an older teen male, his skin a dark tan. His eyes was silver in color and was short in length; two strands of his bangs went all the way to his chin on each side of his face while the back of his hair was spikey, making him look a few inches taller. He was wearing a simple off-white button up shirt with a black sleeveless jacket over it. The collar of his jacket was popped out. There were two small black belts on his torso. His grey pants were a little too large for him and where stuffed into black boots that went to his knees. His golden eyes scanned her carefully. She looked down to what he was holding in his hand. To her disbelief, it was a Keyblade but it didn't look like any Keyblade she had seen before. There was…something sinister, ethereal about the Keyblade. It was made of clocks and the color scheme consisted of blacks and blues. On the end, there was a horned head decal that somewhat gave her the shivers.

She couldn't look away from his eyes. They seemed to look right through her, seeing her every emotion, her every thought. She shifted unsteadily as she said, "U-Uh…thank you, s-sir. For taking care of that creature." She pushed the feeling away and then smiled at him. "You showed up just in time, too! My mana was getting low." She titled her head to the side when the guy didn't say anything to her. She watched him dismiss his Keyblade. "Hey, that was a cool looking Keyblade. How did you get it? I'm still waiting patiently for mine to come." Once more, the guy did not respond. She cleared her throat a little before holding her hand out to him. "My name is Hikari. But most just call me by my middle name, Sarah." She frowned when he did not shake her hand. At this, she slowly pulled it away. "So…what's your name?"

He huffed at the question and walked past her, running against her shoulder.

"Uh—H-Hey! That's the way out over there—wait, hang on!" Sarah stumbled after him. "Don't you want to get away from those creatures too? That door leads into another district, according to the signs—"

She jumped a little when the guy finally spoke. His voice was deep and gruff, "The Heartless have blocked that exit."

"Heartless?" Sarah repeated. She thought for a moment before her mouth shaped into an 'o'. "Oh, that's what those things were called? Fitting name for them, I guess. They seem a little heartless, attacking people for no reason. And what do you mean it's blocked?"

The guy turned around to face her. "Can't you go bother someone else?"

"Well, there really isn't anyone to bother around here besides you so no," Sarah stated.

The man's eyes suddenly darted to the side. Sarah made a curious hum and went on her tiptoes to look past him. In front of them was a dark sphere, near the door. She gulped when a figure in a black coat emerged from the bubble. Its voice was demonic, "There you are!" Out from its sleeves, vines with red thorns zoomed towards the guy.

Sarah gasped and with all was left of her magic, she casted a Firaga spell. She watched the vines burn, shrinking back to the mysterious figure. Over her pants, she yelled, "Run!" She joined the man as they bolted back into the Heartless infested district.


	11. Chapter 11: Hurricane

There was a long silence, the twins burst into a series of accusations, talking over each other:

"What? What do—"

"Dad, what do you mean—"

"Why haven't you—"

"That can't be true—"

"You should have told—"

"What happened—"

"Dad! What's going—"

"Dad, is Mom—"

"Tell us what's going—!"

"Enough!" Riku exclaimed, silencing Aeris and Nico; their eyes going wide at the raise of his voice. Never in their life had they heard their father yell before. Riku realized what he had done and sank into the back of his chair, dragging his hand down his face. He drummed his fingertips on the table before removing his hand from his face. His eyes met with Aeris and Nico's. "Look…I understand that what I said is difficult to comprehend, but…it's true." He continued to tell the twins who their mother really was.

The longer that Riku explained about the past of the twins' mother, the less Nico wanted to hear it. Each word made his blood boil. The secrets, the lies…it was too much for him. He stood up from his chair while Riku was still telling the twins about the experiments that Katie went under, Nico's fists on the table. Nico couldn't believe a single word…his mom sounded like a walking freak show. She was dragged into this world against her own will when she was only sixteen years old, just almost a year older than himself and Aeris. The thought of her avoiding sleep just to stay herself; it was torturous, let alone the fact that in the end it didn't matter in the end because she gave up to Master Xehanort's hold. Then not long after the Organization was defeated, she had to carry all of them around for the rest of her life and got turned into some sort of devilish angel with one wing, to go through the degrade and about died because of it. Nico finally had enough. He slammed his hands on the oak table before launching himself away from the table and stormed out of the room.

"Nico!" Aeris yelped. She hurried out of her own chair and went after him "Nico, come back!"

Riku stood up and watched his children leave in a hurry. He about to go after them but he stopped when he felt a hand grab his wrist. His eyes drifted down to see Master Aqua, her eyes full of sympathy. "Let them go," she said to him. "They have a lot go process. They need to be by themselves…"

"I shouldn't have kept this from them…" Riku muttered under his breath.

"Don't do that to yourself, man," Lea told him. "They had to find out someday."

Terra nodded in agreement. "Lea's right. It's better to tell them yourself than them finding out on their own."

"But I— _we—_ should have told them sooner…Katie and I…"

"What's done is done," Aqua reminded him. She let in a deep breath. "Now…let's talk about what happened at Destiney Island…come up with a strategy."

Aeris finally caught up with Nico a few blocks away from the apartment complex. Like his mother, he was all legs, them making most of his height; despite he was still considered short. Aeris was more build like their father, her legs and torso perfect in proportions but meant she couldn't as many big strides as Nico could. Not to mention that Nico had a lot of excess energy to burn off to keep him going. She met up with Nico under a lamppost. His head was down, looking at his hands. Aeris was taken aback when her twin suddenly collapsed, drawing his knees into his chest and resting his elbows on his knees to place his head in hands. Aeris hurried next to him, sitting down. She leaned forward to try to find his eyes. "Nico…"

Nico lifted his head up, revealing his swollen eyes and cheeks; both were bright red from irritation. At the sight of this, Aeris' arms wrapped around him, holding tight and close. She was surprised when he returned it. His grip on the back of her leather chest piece was tight, so tight that Aeris could feel his fingernails through the thick leather. His silent sobs became a haunting, echoing cry that rang through the empty alley. It hurt Aeris' heart to hear him so distraught. She was just as heartbroken and angry as he was for all those secrets their parents kept from them…but she needed to stay strong, for both herself and her brother. As much she wanted to cry like him, as much she wanted to show how much this broke her, she buried it all inside. She fought her tears, her screams…all she could do was hold him and channel his sorrow within herself to ease his own pain. No matter what, her brother came first. It took a while for Nico's cries to die down. His voice was quiet and muffled as he asked his sister, "Why…w-why did they…why would they hide so much from us, Aeris…? W-Why…?"

Aeris shook her head slowly before she let him go and Nico back up to his feet. She dusted off his clothes and straightened him up a little while she answered, "I don't know. Maybe they were scared to tell us? All those things that Mom went through…if they told us all that when we were younger? That would terrify us. They wanted us to grow up happy, with the troubles of the past stay in the past."

Nico wiped his eyes with his arm, leaving a stain on his black glove. "I-I guess that makes sense…" With a sniff, he looked up to his sister and sent her a giant white-tooth grin. "Thank you, you always know how to calm me down." His grin snapped into a frown and pressed his fingers onto his temples with a sharp intake of air through his teeth.

"What?"

"My head hurts…"

Aeris rose a eyebrow in concern. "From…stress…?"

"No, no…" Nico eyes widened. His hand slowly left his temple. "It's…like the one I had on the island…"

Aeris stared at her brother. "What?" She looked at the ground, her face plagued with confusion. "That…that old man said you having a sense of some kind." Her eyes steeled when she met with Nico's still irritated ones. "Where?"

Nico pointed east. "That way."

"That's where Braig was headed…" Aeris thought out loud. "Do you think he has something to do with it?"

Nico shrugged his shoulders and winced again. "Agh, darn it…" He gave his head a quick shake. "I don't think so. But we need to head out into District 3."

"District 3?" Aeris repeated. "But that's…"

"Heartless territory."

"Dad won't want us to go through there."

That's when Nico sent his sister a sly smile. "Who says Dad has to know?" At that, he burst into a run. "Come on!" He called over his shoulder.

Aeris groaned and dragged her hands down her face. "Oh, for God's sake…" she let out a loud sigh. "Dad is going to kill us…" She followed Nico's lead. She hopes inside that it will go much smoother. Since they know what they're up against now it should be easier, right?

…

….Right…?


	12. Chapter 12: Out of Time

Nico and Aeris hid behind the postal box just behind the east watchtower and the gate to the Third District. The twins noticed how shrewd the watchtower was, as if it was built not that long ago…and built quickly. The watchtower was built from scrapped wood and metal, from the other districts perhaps? Maybe it was debris from other worlds? It was unsure to the twins. A stairwell spiraled around the watchtower from the crow's nest to the ground, gas-lit lanterns strapped onto the railing every few feet. At the top of the watchtower was a person, but only their short black hair was visible. That must be Xion as Clementine mentioned. From their point of view, it seemed that it was as simple as walking past the tower and opening the tall wooden doors. Nico believed it would be an easy sneak from point "A" to point "B" but that's when he saw the search light that was next to Xion. He clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction. Getting to the door was the easy part but it will all be for naught while Xion was in that watchtower.

"What are we gonna do with the guard?" Aeris whispered.

Nico shrugged his shoulders, unsure what to do. He went through scenarios in his head; someone coming to get Xion for something, her seeing someone on the other side, changing shifts—

"We need someone else to take her place," Nico finally said.

"No, really?" Aeris rolled her eyes playfully. "That's the only way I can think of that would work…but a shift change may take a while. And who's to say that the shift won't take place at the top of the tower? Then there's two people to work around…" Her train of thought trailed away, making her brother glance at her. Her brow was scrunched, her lips pursed. Her eyes narrowed at the ground as she tapped her fingernails on her knee. Nico shifted awkwardly at the silence between them until Aeris said, "That's it."

"What?"

"We need to get someone to take her shift and turn a blind eye on us going to the other district."

"And who would that be?"

Aeris opened her mouth to answer but she clamped it shut, her eyesight returning to the ground. Nico made a small grunt at Aeris. HE glanced over their cover and rose an eyebrow. Xion suddenly stood up at her post, placing one of her hands on her search light to ajust the beam. Nico saw her pull something on the other side and the large district doors opened with a loud creak that echoed throughout the square. Xion ran down the stairs to the door, a weapon materializing in her hands. It was red and white in color and resembled a sword, except the tip ended with three points. To Nico, the sword was similar in shape of the white symbol on the back of her black leather jacket. The symbol brought up a memory of his mother getting ready for a mission when he was younger. She left a piece of paper from her report on the table, that symbol next to a picture of a white creature with a flat head and a zipper for a mouth. The word "Nobody" was underneath the symbol. Nico's head shot up when he heard shouts, forcing the memory to fade away. Xion met up with three people at the gate, none of them recognizable to him. The person in the middle was limping, their arms draped over the other two's shoulders and their white lace dress and their black checkered jacket had blood splattered on it. Their spikey blonde hair and the side drill-lock curl ponytail had blood caked into it. The other two, a man who looked just like Ventus, and a woman with golden hair and a red eye, had blood on them as well, but unlike the one in the middle, they didn't have any visible wounds. There was shouting; Xion calling one of them "Roxas". At that, Nico onnected the dots. The three people must be the people who Lea was mentioning before the meeting: Roxas, Yumi, and Rin. He wasn't sure which one was which.

Aeris nudged Nico. He looked down at her, sending her a puzzled look. She pointed at the gate, which was still open. That' swhen he noticed the group and Xion were walking away from the gate. Once the group went past the postal box, Nico and Aeris went out of cover and rushed to the closing gates. They barely squeezed through before the doors shut heavily, a thud echoing behind them. It was Nico who spoke between pants, "Well…that…that was easy…"

Aeris nodded in agreement but her brow furrowed, her lips pursed. Nico followed her gaze and his jaw dropped. The area beyond the Third Gate was small…but beautiful. The cobblestone was purple in color, the walls made of grey marble staircases and ramps with gold railings and décor. In the far right corner was a large fountain that was light with golden light with glass behind it that had two neon profiles of dogs. The fountain was labeled "Lady and the Tramp". Tucked away in the back was a red door shaped like a pointed keyhole; another door to another district perhaps? Up the left stairs were two apartment buildings. Nico took one step forward and felt his shoe soak. He looked down and grimaced at the red puddle that was below him, the beauty of the district fading away slowly. This must have been where the person in the white dress got hurt. Around the blood stain was dark pools of shadows. "Heartless remains," Nico spoke, grabbing his sister's attention.

Aeris looked down and shared Nico's expression. "Ouch…that had to hurt…I hope that girl will be okay."

"Me too." A pulse of pain rippled through Nico, making him hiss. He waved off Aeris when she showed concern. "It's the sense again. It's…stronger here." He felt the sudden migraine shift to the left side of his head and pulsated. He rubbed his temple, giving his head a quick shake. Like if it were a compass, he followed the migraine slowly to the stairs, climbing up them when the pain formed behind his eyes, telling him to go up. Once at the top, it went back to the left, towards the dark oak door past the apartments. He opened the door with caution when the sense told him to go that way, sticking his head through. He slid by, motioning his sister to come forward. He let out a yelp when his shoe snagged after a few steps down the ally, making him faceplant.

Aeris hurried by his side, helping him up. "You okay?"

Nico made a curt nod and brushed off his front. "Yeah, yeah, I'm good. Just regular klutzy old me." His grin faded as he looked down to see what he tripped on. "Is…is that…?" He knelt down and grabbed a think green tube that was rough to the touch with sharp red barbs. "What are vines doing here? And…why are they so huge?" He dropped the vine and stepped over the mangled vines, making his way out of the alley. "Someone call a gardener…" He mumbled to himself. As made his way around the corner, he jumped when he heard a demonic laugh that pierced his eardrums. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and goosebumps formed. With Aeris right behind him, he dashed around the corner. They gasped at what they saw.

It was a humanoid plant wearing a black coat, vines growing out of their sleeves. The vines slithered down on the ground, the walls, towards two people, one older than the other. The older one was leaning against the smaller figure. The smaller person was wearing a black and white striped jacket that was far too large for them over overall shorts. Their red sneakers stood out against the pavement along with their white knee socks. Their hair was spikey and a reddish-brown with two spikey pigtails on the bottom. The twins recognized them right away, and without thinking, Nico let out a shout:

"Sarah!"


	13. Chapter 13: Your Best Nightmare

At the sound of her name, Sarah spun around. She sent them a grin, showing off her missing four front teeth, with relief in her eyes. "Nico! Aeris!" Before she could run towards them, with the unknown man in tow, the vines shot up from the ground, elapsing them in a tight make-shift cage. She let out a pained shout when she bumped into the barbs, falling backwards and landing hard on her tailbone. Her arms left the man and she scratched fiercely at the bleeding dots on her exposed skin, then she started trembling uncontrollably.

The flowerlike humanoid laughed at her. "OH, you idiot! Did you really think you could get away from me? IF you would have given me the boy, you wouldn't be in this mess!"

Nico ran up to the cage, rage thickening this scream. He skidded to a halt when a wall of the same barbed vines erupted at his feet. He yelled, "What did you do to her!?"

A giggle-fit took over the creature from the other side of the wall, "O-Oh! And who are you? These idiots Calvary?" There was a pause. "Wait…I do know you! You… _you_! You are her children! I can see it! OH, this will make her happy! She will give me a soul for sure!"

Aeris and Nico glanced at each other, Nico mouthing "Soul?" to Aeris, who shrugged her shoulders. Aeris headed over to the barrier, going to see a way round the thing but came up on the short end of her luck. Nico growled at this and yelled, "Look, weirdo! I don't know about this 'soul' business but you got a lot of nerve! Sarah's my friend…our friend! And…and you don't want to mess with us!"

The twins heard crackling, a sound that was similar to corn growing; an earthly popping and creaking. Their necks craned upwards to see the tower of vines to see the humanoid, its arms growing larger. Did it detach its previous arms? The large red claws at the end of the thick vines gripped onto the wall it made between the twins and Sarah. They gasped to see that it's face outgrew into large pincher-like jaws, teeth human-shaped. On each side of one pincher was an human-shaped eye, blinking vertically. Above those eyes were another set of eyes, blinking normally. What was in between the eyes disturbed the twins; it appeared to be a large old television screen, large wires trailing out of it and attaching to its back as well as two large pulsating vines. On the tv screen was a large black and white smiling cartoon face. The middle of its lined eyes opened vertically, revealing green irises and red sclera. The mouth opened to show its teeth and the laugh that erupted from the television nearly shattered the twins eardrums thanks not only the volume of the distortion of the it. It said to them, "Aw, aren't you two just adorable?! Simply adorable!? Golly, you must be so confused!" One of its claws slammed next to Nico, making him stumble sideways into sister. " _YOU cAn't dEfEAt a GOD!"_ After a short pause, it yelled, "You're coming with me!"

The twins jumped out of the vines way, successfully dodging them. The vines shot towards the twins as they ran away from them. One of the many vines littering the ground rose up slightly, wrapping around Aeris' ankle. She let out a surripsed yelp when it yanked her ground, making her chin hit the pavement and clank her teeth hardly against each other. The taste of metal came to her mouth as a warm sensation dribbled down the corners of her lips. She didn't have the time to assess the situation she was in before her body painfully flew up from the ground. She felt her spine slide thanks to all her weight being rushed to her head. Out of the corner of her eye, Aeris saw her brother running towards her, rage in his eyes. He jumped over vines and slid on the floor to get under some as he rushed to her. Aeris' eyes widened when she saw one the monster's clawed hands rise behind Nico. "Behind you!"

Nico spun around and gasped, rolling backwards to escape from the monster's grasp. HE shot back up to his feet while the ground rumbled on the hand's impact and set his sights back on his sister. With all his effort, he jumped up high and wrapped his thin arms around Aeris' torso, pulling her down as he descended. Back on the ground, Nico grabbed the vine that held his sister captive and upside down and ripped it in half. Green goo gushed out of the vines at the action, it flailing widely as the monster screamed in pain. Nico helped Aeris up, his eyes darting towards her chin. Aeris wiped the blood away with her arm warmer, mentally telling him that she was alright and sending her thanks.

Their eyes glanced up at the large tv when the monster exclaimed, "YOU BRAT! That HURT!" It opened its mouth and after a moment, flames burst out of it.

Nico grabbed Aeris' wrist and darted out of the flames' way. He let out a small yell of surprise when he saw that his coat's bottom caught on fire. He quickly took it off and stomped on it to smother the flame. He put back on as he dodge another blow from the monster. He shouted to Aeris, "What's the plan?!"

"I don't know!" Aeris shouted back. She summersaulted when the monster shot what looked like a flower at her. To her surprise, it exploded on impact, making her thankful that she dodged just in time. "Maybe pissing of the giant plant wasn't your best idea!"

Nico rolled his eyes when he jumped over grabbing vines, stomping the ones that tried to take him like they did with Aeris, making more green goo cover him. "Oh, yeah so my fault. What else was I suppose to do?" He snapped another large vine. In a mock voice, he said, "Oh, hi Mr. Plant! Oh, I see you got our friend and possibly poisoned her! Sure, yeah! Go right ahead and take her! Oh, and as a bonus, take my sister too! Careful, she bites and has a weird obsession with her hair—"

"Okay, okay! I get it!" Aeris joined her brother and pulled him away from a red thorn projectile. "But now's not the time for bickering! WE need a plan to get Sarah!"

Nico shoved Aeris out the way of a vine, and crushed it under his boot. He helped Aeris back up. "I know. We need weapons!" His eyes darted around frantically before he dashed to the side, and picked up something from the ground.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm improvising!"

"…Nico, that's a _stick!_ "

"Yes, but a sharp and pointy stick!" Nico held his stick out defensively when a vine shot at him. He smacked it away and stabbed it quickly. He smirked at his victory when the vines shrunk away from him. He headed back to his sister with haste, batting away vines that tried to get him. From the corner of his eye, he saw another flower bomb coming towards them. He planted his feet firmly on the ground and held the stick at his side before gripping onto it with two hands, getting into a batting stance. Aeris stared at him with confusion at this, not sure what to think of it. Her shoulder drooped in disappointment as the 'I can't believe you right now' look crept on her face when Nico yelled, "Hey, batter-batter…!" Just before the flower-bomb hit Aeris, he smacked it with the stick, making a loud crack. It zoomed back at the monster. "Swing!"

The bomb hit the monster's tv right in the center, making the screen crack. The monster thrashed around as it screamed in agony as the cracks grew larger and deeper. The screen exploded when the bomb set off. The monster clawed at its now destroyed face, screaming cusses over its lungs. Aeris almost felt sympathy for the monster…but then again…it did try to hurt them in ways they couldn't imagine and then take them to its master. It yelled at twins, "You idiots! Idiots, idiots, idiots!" In its rage, it threw its arms down in full force. Aeris and Nico backed away slowly from the move, what felt like an eternity as the large arms came crashing down. But, it never came. Instead, there was a loud thud and the monster's agonized yells. The twins eyes slowly opened to see the arms where cut in half. Their eyes widened when they saw red arrows of light plaster the monster, tearing it to shreds. Nico squinted at the flashes of darkness that materialized around the monster. The monster's vines shrank as the monster kept being shot to bits. The ground shook like an earthquake when it came crashing down on its side, the wiring coming undone on itself, sending sparks everywhere. Its body convulsed before it went limp. The flash of darkness appeared in front the monster, a familiar voice saying, "All bark and no bite, ain't ya, ya poor bastard…"

Nico made a toothy grin. "Braig!"

At his name he turned around, a smirk forming on his face. He strapped his crossbows on his back and took a few puffs of his cigarette before flicking it at the monster. "Well, well…if it isn't Silver and Fuzz-Head. You two are just everywhere where you aren't supposed to be, huh?" He walked over to them. He looked at Aeris. "Yikes, that looked like it hurt. What happened, did he dropped you on your head?"

"Yeah."

"Oh. Ow. That'd had to hurt." He turned his head at the cage that held Sarah and the other boy. "Ah, there he is." HE headed to the cage as he dug a knife out of his pocket.

"Wait, you know him?" Aeris asked him.

"Well, yeah. He's the guy I'm looking for," Braig answered as he hacked at the vines away. It took him a couple to make a large enough hole that he could step through. He raised an eyebrow at Sarah. "Jesus, do they let kids run ramped out here? And they called Organization heartless bastards…" He knelt beside her and brought out a small blue bottle with a green liquid in it. It had a star decoration on the front of it. He poured the liquid on Sarah's wounds. To the twins amazement, they healed in the blink of an eye, as if it was never happened.

Sarah's deep blue eyes fluttered open. Her pupils focused lazily on Braig. "Who…Who are you?"

Braig frowned at her. "Oh, come on…you have the drowned goldfish look…you're Sora's kid, aren't you?"

"Yes…?"

Braig smacked his forehead. "God, no escape from that kid." He let out a groan and got up to his feet, offering his hand to her. Sarah took it with hesitation and he helped up. She looked past him and smiled largely, running towards Aeris and Nico. Braig bent down and grabbed the boy, hoisting him over his shoulder in a fireman's carry before joining them. "Okay. On the road again, huh? Plus two. The more, the merrier, right? But…no more saving your butts, okay? Okay. Let's go."

* * *

Sorry if this chapter seemed to be all over the place...I kept getting distracted and I'm like really tired...xD Anyway, leave a review if you liked the chapter! Wuba Luba Dub Dub!


	14. Chapter 14: Bad Apple

Her head shot up when she felt a piece of her heart break, clutching onto it. Tears that will threatening to fall flooded her eyes at the sudden pain. Her breathing turned sharp hisses of air through her teeth. She stumbled out of her chair of her new quarters, almost falling on top of her desk. With a grunt, she steadied herself and while clumsy feet, she came out of her room. She stumbled into the blank white halls that were now hers. She kept one hand on the wall, to keep her balance while her knees knocked together from weakness. She had no idea what was happen. Never in her existence did she experience this pain. Her breathing became labored as she delved deeper and deeper into her castle. Out of one of connecting hallways, a small boy with blood red hair came out. He was wearing a closed-buttoned black jacket with red trimming, a white collar of his shirt poking out the jacket's puffed out red collar. Around his neck was a bolo tie, the amulet a red demon's eye. His black pants with red stripes encircling twice near the bottom stopped at his knees, his black and grey boots not far from them. His red and gold eyes blinked at the sight at the female, not knowing to think at first. His eyes suddenly widened as she rushed forward, catching the female in his arms before she crashed into the ground. He looked around franticly to find one of his colleges but to his luck, there was no one. He groaned under the weight of the female before called out, "Xalgon! Ixulos!"

That did the trick. Two dark portals opened before him not long after his cries for help. Out came the Scottish twins, still in the original Organization XIII coats. Xalgon gasped at the sight and helped the boy lift up the woman before his twin brother, Ixulos, joined his side, taking the young boy's place. It was Xalgon who spat, "Number V, what happened?"

Number V puffed out his cheeks at the tone of Xalgon's voice. He crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't know, why do you sound like it was my fault?"

Xalgon growled at him. "Now's not da time ta argue, brat. Just tell us what happened."

The boy kicked at the floor, making dust poof in front of him. He was surprised at this. Why was this version of the Castle so beat up? So run down, as if it hasn't been used in years? He decided to ignore the fact and explained, "I don't know. She was stumbling around had to much to drink or she was sick. She was leaning against the wall and clutching at her chest, like this, making this face." He grabbed at his jacket, clutching the fabric into his fist over his heart. He scrunched his brow, and clenched his teeth, showing off his pearly whites. He straightened up as he asked, "Is something wrong with her?"

Ixulos and Xalgon looked at each other, looking as if they were having a mental conversation. Ixulos opened up a dark portal next to them. "We will figure out what happened to Tiaxek…Number V…Dante, correct?" The boy nodded his head. "Go check on the prisoners. Number I must be evaluated." At that, the twins walked through the portal with Tiaxek in tow.

Dante blinked at where the portal was before letting out a frustrated huff. He did not like this new Organization, not one bit. Sure, Tiaxek saved from his own…but at what cost? And how did he end up here, exactly? This woman, Tiaxek, just showed up to his room at Castle that Never Was, proposing a better job for him. To his eagerness and fear of becoming a full vessel, he took it. But…he couldn't remember the details. He did not know, how or when, he was taken here. All this was new to him…and concerned him. The abandoned-like Castle That Never Was, Xemnas and Xehanort and the others nowhere to be found…it made his head spin. The most confusing and disturbing part was not this…strange Organization…but it was the prisoners:

A much, _much_ older Sora and Kiari…

* * *

Nico took the end of the line of misfits, trailing behind a bit behind since he was too distracted looking at the destroyed buildings and appartments. Some of the buildings were caved in on themselves, the streets next to them cracked and uneven as if an earthquake happened. Others were on fire, embers and ash falling onto the ground and fluttering through the breeze like snowflakes. He shuddered at the thought that some of the heartless they've encountered could have been created by theses destroyed buildings and streets. He wondered aloud, "So…what happened here…?"

Sarah turned her head with a small hum. When realizing that it was Nico who spoke up, she turned on her heel and started walking backwards so she faced Nico. "It was those…monsters. Xeha called them 'Heartless'."

"Xeha?" Braig repeated.

Sarah nodded. "It's my nickname for him. Lot easier to say than his full name." She blanked out for a few seconds before rattling her head and clearing her throat. She continued, "Anyway, some of these buildings weren't like this when I got here. Like…that over there?" She pointed at a pile of rubble a few yards west of them. "That was a giant brick building earlier. A clocktower slash glass house, I think. It was white, and it gleamed in the moon light. It was nothing like what we had back home! I camped there for a while when the doors wouldn't open for me. IT was so cool in there! All these exposed gears and gizmos that ran the clock…oh it was awesome! Better than any noise maker I've used. It was…calming. I think it was…a day before the Heartless found me. I had enough time to escape and head to the other district…but…as soon as I ran out…it just crumbled. The Heartless' presence alone made it collapse on itself. I tried…I tried so hard to make peace with them but…" Her voice trailed off, going into her own world, not wanting to speak of her time here anymore.

Braig said to her, "Well, there's your first problem. Thinking that you can actually make nice with those things. Heartless and mindless bastards that won't stop at anything to collect someone's darkness in their heart. With times like this, darkness can show in even the purest of hearts."

"You know a lot about Heartless," Aeris commented.

Braig shrugged his shoulders, careful that he didn't accidently shrug off Xeha, as Sarah called him. "Well, I'm older than dirt so you're danm right I know a lot on these guys." He spat out his cigarette, having it trampled by Sarah as they continued back to District Three. Sarah hopped up ahead of Braig, opening the large door back to District Three since Braig wasn't able to do it himself.

A silence hovered over the group. After dealing with the silence for too long, Nico spoke up, "So what are you gonna do now? Since you found your friend?"

Braig opened his mouth to answer but clamped it back shut. His mouth pucked up to the side, making it shrink on itself into a puzzled look. "Actually….I…have no idea. To be honest…I'm not exactly…say…welcome in District One."

"Why?" Inquired Sarah.

"Because he's part of Organization XIII," answered a familiar voice.

The Heart twins shrank on themselves at the voice, cringing at it. "D-Dad…"

Riku had come around the corner, his Keyblade, Way to Dawn, clutched in his right hand. Accompanying him was Terra and Clementine. Clementine aimed her shotgun at Braig, growling at him as she cocked it. Riku eyes scanned over the group, disapproval clear on his face. His eyes stopped on the twins and his eyes narrowed at them. "There you are. Do you have any idea how terrified I was when I couldn't find you?!"

It was Nico who said, "L-Let me explain—"

Riku let out a harsh 'sh!' at his son, making Nico shrink into himself more. He glared at Aeris. "I would expect better from you, Aeris."

"Dad—"

"Not now. We'll talk about it later," Riku barked. Aeris hung her head in shame, feeling regret rising in her chest and the waterworks getting ready to burst behind her eyes.

Terra spat at Braig. "What are you doing with them?"

"Who, me?" Braig asked innocently. "I'm being their goddamn chauffeur because someone apparently can't keep track of their own kids."

Riku growled at him. "No one asked you."

"Actually, ya did—"

Everyone froze when Clementine fired into the sky, grabbing their attention and letting the shot ring through the night. "Would you all just shut up and get into District One? We can play the blame game later."

Terra glare did not leave Braig as he said, "For now, you and your friend," he pointed at Xeha, "Are under arrest."

"Wait, what?!" The twins and Sarah yelled in unision.

"But-but, Uncle Terra!"

"Braig helped us!"

"Yeah! Twice!"

"And Xeha saved my life!"

"Enough!" Riku yelled. He dismissed his weapon and jabbed his finger at the fortified gate behind him. "District One. _Now_."

* * *

Hey, ya'll! Dante belongs to my dear friend, LightandDarkHeart! He's in her KH fanfic "Heart and Soul". Go check it out! I hope you liked it, Light! I may get a few more of your characters in here as well. And don't worry for the people who asked to have their characters in the story awhile back! They'll be showing up in later (or maybe sooner!) chapters! BUT! I will no longer take requests from others for their characters for this series anymore. I have enough characters to sort through as it is xD. And sorry if the story is a little slow right now, gotta build up some backstory and plot before we get into the juicy stuff, yes?

Anywoot, I hope you liked it! Leave a review if you did! WUBBALUBBADUBDUB!


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